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Such a reduction, which would occur through attrition, would mark the first time the size of the police service has been scaled back in its 40-year history.

The reduction in officers would be achieved through attrition. There are currently 769 officers and 296 civilians in the service.

“This is the perfect budget storm,” Torigian said of the fiscal restraints faced by police.

On Wednesday, the police board told the chief to reduce the preliminary 2013 budget by $3.3 million in order to achieve a total tax levy increase of 1.75 per cent.

“It’s tough times and everybody has to participate in the solution,” said police board chair Tom Galloway, adding that taxpayers can no longer sustain annual increases to the police budget of between eight and 10 per cent.

This year, 15 officers were hired.

A reduced budget of $135 million would see police costs rise by 7.3 per cent and the hiring of 10 civilians, four of them being special constables staffing the new courthouse in Kitchener scheduled to open in March.

“What the board has signalled very clearly is they want to reduce services,” the chief said in an interview.

He said patrol officers and investigative branches would not be affected, but high school liaison officers and community resources officers could be cut.

In November, the police board asked Torigian to present budget scenarios that would reduce the tax levy increase to between one and 2.5 per cent.

On Wednesday, the board adopted a scenario that would reduce the police budget by $2.3 million and the tax levy increase to two per cent by deferring the hiring of four civilians and reducing staffing costs by $1 million — the equivalent of losing eight officers with more than 23 years service through attrition.

The board then asked the chief to reduce the budget by a further $1 million for a total cut of $3.3 million. That would bring the tax levy increase to 1.75 per cent.

Since 85 per cent of the police budget is staffing, Torigian said the additional $1 million saving would probably be achieved through the equivalent loss of another eight veteran officers.

Between 18 and 20 officers leave the service every year, but Torigian said in reality it may take the loss of 25 officers to achieve $2 million in savings as officers retire throughout the year.

Meanwhile, the police board balked at the chief’s suggestion to close the rural detachments in New Hamburg and Elmira to save about $150,000.

Galloway said store front police stations are valued in small communities. “People would see their closure as a loss, and for that amount of money it is not worth it.”

But Torigian said he would rather lose those detachments than officers. “I would rather reduce the bricks and mortar than the people.”

Bruce Tucker, head of the Waterloo Regional Police Association, said he understands the need for fiscal responsibility, but would prefer the service concentrate on fighting crime and shut down services such as the mounted unit.

The police budget still needs to be approved by the police board and regional council.

On Wednesday, Torigian took his budget to regional council, and unlike previous years, he was praised for his “responsible budget.”

But North Dumfries Mayor Rob Deutschmann argued that instead of cutting the budget, it should hire more officers to improve response times, especially in the townships.

He said he may recommend police get more money when their budget is approved by council in January.

“There is a desire to move in the other direction than what this budget is saying,” he said.

Torigian said cutting staff is the only way to decrease the budget as requested by the board.

“It is not what we are recommending. It is what the board is recommending,” the chief told Deutschmann.